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Let America Be America Again, By Langston Hughes

1849 Words8 Pages

Many African Americans moved from their houses in the South to more industrial, urban areas in the north. This caused the Harlem Renaissance to be the greatest migration of African-Americans to northern cities. The Harlem Renaissance took place in Harlem, New York. There were many influential figures of the New Negro Movement that gave African Americans power to do what they genuinely love and to live life as they wish. This was where African American artists, writers, and musicians found their voice and made a mark in history. During the 1920s, Langston Hughes, a prolific African American poet wrote "Harlem," “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” "I, Too," and "Let America Be America Again" and portrayed the struggles and challenges of African …show more content…

/ Nobody’ll dare / say to me, / “Eat in the kitchen.” (I,Too 8-13)
They’ll rise and soon be with the rest of “America” Besides, they’ll see how beautiful I am And be ashamed- I, Too am America.” The use of the words “beautiful” and “ashamed” contradict each other because they are both American, it adds irony to the situation (Hughes, Langston “I, Too by Langston Hughes).
He uses his poem to push for their dreams criticizing those who remain dormant. The war should not be the barrier between the idea that freedom can wait. African Americans believed that they would eventually gain their rights if they waited long enough, however, once the war became more common, the idea that they would became a fantasy. In the end, Hughes decided that he must use his knowledge to publicize his opinion and contribute to what the true meaning of the Harlem Renaissance was. Like many of his other poems, Hughes introduces the problem where those who do nothing get nothing out of it. Langston Hughes was an important person that was a wake-up call for the African-Americans to actively fight for change and pursue their …show more content…

“Let America be America again. / Let it be the dream it used to be. / Let it be the pioneer on the plain / Seeking a home where he himself is free. / (America never was America to me.) / Let America be the dream the dreamers dreamed— / Let it be that great strong land of love” ( Let America Be America Again

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1227 Words | 5 Pages

“I am the poor white, fooled and pushed apart, I am the Negro bearing slavery’s scars. I am the red man driven from the land, I am the immigrant clutching the hope I seek.” In the poem “Let America Be America Again” by Langston Hughes, the reader here’s from two different speakers, and how they both seperately want America to change. One of the speakers wants America to go back to what it was before, while the other responds in small comments, building up to say the quote you read at the beginning. In the poem “Let America Be America Again” the author has two separate speakers with contradicting thoughts, the author relates to problems that were happening in the real world, and how the author’s rhyme scheme is a vital component to how this poem reads.

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1.Langston Hughes was an African-American author, poet, playwright and a social activist in the era of the Harlem Renaissance. Langston lived in New York's Harlem and went through various experiences in the artistic period which heavily influenced his vivid works. Hughes took after the intellectual, social, and artistic atmosphere of the Harlem Renaissance and incorporated it into many of his works like “The Weary Blues”. 2.Langston Hughes is regarded as one of the most notorious and influential figures in the Harlem Renaissance. His contributions to the lively era included him writing about the world around him which brought about a familiar and relatable feeling to his African American readers and a vivid imagery to his White readers.

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He was later well-known for The Great Gatsby and wrote about the roaring twenties. Langston Hughes (Feb 1st, 1902-1967) An African American poet and novelist famous for African American themes that made him an important contributor to the Harlem Renaissance. He wrote in a new form called jazz poetry. He was famous for saying “I am Negro and Beautiful”.

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Langston Hughes is one of the most well named writers of the Harlem Renaissance. Mr Hughes wrote for a variety of people from children books to plays but his most famous work are his poems. He moved to Harlem to attend college but he dropped out and began spending all his time in harlem writing and working to support himself. All of his writings reflected the African american culture because he believe it was just as important as the white culture. Some of his most famous pieces of work was “ Let America Be America Again” ,”One Way Ticket” and “Democracy”.

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The poem explains that the freedom and equality America is supposed to stand for only relates to rich white people. Langston Hughes was an African American writer. He wrote fiction, short stories, and poetry. He was also a key member in Harlem Renaissance and the African American literary movement during the 1920s and 1930s. He often times wrote about the racial injustices he and many other faced daily.

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Hughes was born in Missouri in 1902 and studied in the New York at the University of Columbia and in Pennsylvania at Lincoln University. During his four decade career Langston wrote 16 volumes of poems as well as many other works. He traveled extensively throughout his life and wrote about his travels in two volumes of his autobiography. Hughes is well known for his works that addressed struggles of African American communities throughout the United States, Hughes “believed it was his vocation to ‘explain and illuminate the Negro condition in America’ (DiYanni 993).” Though many of his poems are describing racism in the early to mid 20th century, they are still relatable to many people

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This poem emphasized that people who worked hard in building up our nation aren't being treated justly. The people whose sweat and blood were used to help create and expand our land. Langston Hughes expresses that America was never the America where every man is free, but he swears that America will be. Langston Hughes' Poem, Let America be America Again, contributed to the Harlem Renaissance by promoting an equal America. This poem emphasized that the people who help build up America was not given fair enough treatment for what their people did.

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Inspiration Throughout The Decades Langston Hughes once said “In writing truthfully about the life of the Negro people and the relationships of negroes and whites, in this country, it helps to teach Negro children that there is a culture among their own people. Therefore I think that Negro writers help to uplift the whole mass of the people” (Voices and Visions).

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